


there's no other place i'd ever wanna go

by canlie



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Emotional Manipulation, M/M, Possessive Behavior, Slice of Life, Stockholm Syndrome, Unhealthy Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-26
Updated: 2018-11-26
Packaged: 2019-08-29 20:33:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,207
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16751092
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/canlie/pseuds/canlie
Summary: Chanyeol falls in love. It doesn't turn out the way he thinks it's supposed to.





	there's no other place i'd ever wanna go

**Author's Note:**

> prompt #bae1161
> 
> this is unbeta-ed so i'm sorry if there are any mistakes (i'll have to read through this all on my free time OTL)  
> also, title is tentative....... still tryna think of a better one

**667  
**   


Chanyeol gets called into work on a Thursday night, his supposed day off. His manager tells him his co-worker called in sick. No one else was free to cover. Chanyeol wants to tell his manager that he can’t, but then he remembers how they know he’s practically a social recluse, so he folds, even if he doesn’t want to. 

The mini mart is a good forty minutes away from where he lives. Usually, he walks to work, but that’s when he leaves his place early. Now though, he’s forced to take the bus and take a few coins out of his rent. He just hopes his boss doubles his pay for tonight.

The bus ride to work is uneventful. Chanyeol gets on and sits at the seat near the doors just so he can hightail it once he gets to his stop. Not a lot of people get on the bus, which is understandable since it’s 3 in the morning. Chanyeol stares blankly at all the buildings the bus passes by. He wishes he had the guts to tell his boss no earlier.

Nanari Mart’s pink neon sign shines brightly on the otherwise dim street. The mini mart is probably the only store in this side of town, which was why a lot of people dropped by during the mornings and afternoons. Chanyeol gets down from the bus and walks the short distance from the bus stop. From outside, he can see that not a lot of people go to Nanari. He thinks this is a good thing—at least he can sneak in a nap or two.

He is greeted by his boss’ angry voice, the old man screaming at his phone as he glares down at the cash register. Chanyeol takes off his cap and runs his fingers through his hair to get rid of his hat hair. He waits until his boss finishes his nagging before going behind the counter, putting on his work vest, and then giving his boss a mock salute. “‘Sup.”

“You’re late,” is all the greeting he gets. Chanyeol doesn’t mind though, only purses his lips and nods as they exchange places, the taller of the two now manning the counter. Old Man Lee only tells Chanyeol to not leave the till before he’s out of the store, phone already back on his ear as he nags at another unfortunate someone.

Since this is Chanyeol’s first time getting the graveyard shift, he has no idea what to expect. He spends the next thirty minutes wide awake and alert; all thanks to the power nap he had at home earlier and a piece of chocolate bar he found while rummaging underneath the counter (of course, he first had to make sure that it wasn’t part of the inventory anymore before eating it).

After a while of no one coming in though, Chanyeol resorts to using his phone to listen to music instead. He’d rather watch some videos, but he could barely even see anything with the cracks on his phone. He makes another mental note to himself to start saving up for a new phone.

For now, he settles with gently swaying his body along to Sungjune’s voice. He stares down at the cracked screen of his phone but his eyes are unfocused. Chanyeol might as well be sleeping with his eyes wide open.

It’s not until he’s at the fourth song is he startled back to his senses by something being slammed on the counter. Chanyeol yelps and jumps in his seat, one of his earphones yanked out from his ear when his hand jerks. He looks up in surprise to see a two boys—one blond and one brunet. Chanyeol has a hunch that the blond one doesn’t like him very much, if the glare on him was any indication, but at least the brunet looked nice.

“Does your boss know you’re slacking off on your job?” Blond & Bitchy scowls.

Beautiful Brunet gently slaps his friend. “Stop being mean.”

Chanyeol keeps quiet; only pockets his phone and stands up from his seat so he can scan their items (one pack of beer and two bags of strawberry gummies). He doesn’t look over at either of the two as he tells them the amount to be paid, keeps his head down when one of them pays (Chanyeol thinks it’s Blond & Bitchy since the hand made sure to not touch Chanyeol’s when he was giving back their change).

He bows when he finishes packing up the things they bought and pretends to be engrossed with the cash register until he’s sure that they’ve left. When he hears the rustle of plastic, he finally allows himself to look up again, only to see that Beautiful Brunet had stayed, clutching onto the strawberry gummies. Blond & Bitchy had already left the store with their bag of beer in hand.

The two of them stare at each other for a long time. Chanyeol’s mostly confused as to why Beautiful Brunet is still here when his friend had already left. The gummies were already paid for, and he doesn’t seem to be needing anything else. Just when Chanyeol’s about to ask him if he could help, Beautiful Brunet flashes him a smile before turning around to go after his friend.

Nothing else happens for the next few hours of Chanyeol’s shift.

 

 

**653  
**   


Chanyeol is falling behind on rent. 

He’s taken up a job at a café a street away from the mini mart he works in, hoping to get some extra cash. He heads over at the café right after his shift at the store, making sure his boss won’t see him. Sure, the café pays pretty well, way better than the mart, but he knows he won’t last at the coffee shop because Chanyeol values his sleep very much. As soon as he earns enough to get him by for the next three months or so, he’s going to quit and go back to spending his free days just lazing at home.

Since he doesn’t know how to make any drink yet (and he never will—he’s going to quit before they can even teach him properly), he’s tasked with being a waiter and cleaning up after customers leave. It’s an easy enough job, and it’s one where Chanyeol gets a lot of free time in his hands since the customers always stay for hours. When he has nothing to do, he either catches up on sleep at the back or helps out the baristas with the cashier.

Friday nights at the café are surprisingly quiet. A lot of the customers had left around six, so now they’re only left with a handful of students frantically typing on their laptops. Chanyeol’s co-worker sits on the floor underneath the counter, playing a game on his phone. Chanyeol remains standing in front of the register, drumming his fingers on the countertop as he hums under his breath.

There’s still five more hours left of his shift. After that, it’s a five minute walk to the bus stop and a forty minute ride home. If he’s lucky, he might get home just before his landlord wakes up. God knows what he’d do if he has to hear the old lady scream at him again for being late with his rent, even if he’d already told her he’s working on it.

The game that his co-worker is playing looks very entertaining to Chanyeol now. There are no more customers coming in and he can’t really play anything on his phone, no thanks to the cracked screen. He’s just about to sit down on the floor to watch when the bell attached to the front door rings and Chanyeol’s head whips up.

“Hello, welcome to Bandal.”

It’s Beautiful Brunet.

It doesn’t seem like he’s noticed Chanyeol yet, still too busy squinting at the menu. Chanyeol remains standing in front of the cashier, hands folded in front of him, while his co-worker stands up with a grunt to prepare the drinks. After what seems like a few minutes, Beautiful Brunet finally looks at Chanyeol and gasps, seemingly surprised to see the tall raven.

“It’s you!” He says, smiling at Chanyeol with a finger pointed right at him. “The guy from the mini mart near my school.”

Chanyeol only nods with his lips pursed into a small smile. He doesn’t really know what to reply to that, so he just asks Beautiful Brunet what he wants.

“Oh, um,” Beautiful Brunet looks up at the menu again, a light flush on his cheeks. Chanyeol wonders if it’s cold outside. “I’ll get two Americanos, three macchiatos, and a hot chocolate. All large and for to-go, please.”

Chanyeol nods and punches in the order, tells Beautiful Brunet his total, and takes his money. Chanyeol doesn’t ask for his name because there’s no one else that ordered, but he gives his it anyway. “Baekhyun,” Beautiful Brunet— _Baekhyun_ —says. Chanyeol only nods again.

His co-worker works on the drinks. Chanyeol remains standing at the counter, since he can’t help. Baekhyun stays in place too, even though Chanyeol had already told him he can just sit down and he’ll take his drinks to him once they’re done.

“We had this game to see who would buy coffee for us,” Baekhyun says, now leaning on the counter, watching his drinks get made. “I lost, so I had to go out and buy.”

Chanyeol doesn’t know why he’s talking to him, but it’d be rude for him to ignore the guy. He gives Baekhyun a small smile instead. He really doesn’t know what to reply. The smile seems to be enough though because Baekhyun smiles back before ducking his head. The flush on his cheeks turn darker.

Three out of six drinks are done when Baekhyun tries to talk to him again, clearing his throat to get Chanyeol’s attention. “So,” he starts, nibbling on his bottom lip. “Did you quit your job at the store?”

Chanyeol doesn’t know if he wants to answer that question, but there’s really nothing else for him to do. “No.”

“Oh.” Silence. “So you have two jobs?” Chanyeol nods. “Is that allowed?”

Chanyeol shrugs. “My bosses don’t mind.” He doesn’t bother mentioning the fact that they don’t know about his other job either. Baekhyun only hums and nods in reply.

The two of them are silent again. Chanyeol doesn’t mind just standing there and watching his co-worker make drinks but Baekhyun looks like he’s trying too hard to think of something else to talk about. He looks like he really wants to talk to Chanyeol some more but Chanyeol doesn’t understand why. In the end, the tall raven decides to save him the trouble.

“Had to get another job or else I might get kicked out by my landlord.” From the corner of his eye, Chanyeol can see Baekhyun perk up and look at him in surprise. “Mart wasn’t paying much, found out café was hiring and the pay’s good.”

Baekhyun seems to have recovered from shock. He’s smiling widely again, mouth already open to reply until he’s cut off by Chanyeol’s co-worker for his order. Baekhyun sighs deeply and grimaces. Chanyeol’s lips quirk a small smile in amusement. The brunet holds a hand out as if telling Chanyeol to wait before he goes over to the pickup counter to get his drinks. When he gets back he’s fumbling for something in his pockets.

“Y’know, you can put those down here first.” Chanyeol says, patting the counter.

Baekhyun stops his fumbling to blush and then slowly sets the drinks down. Then he starts to look through his pockets again. Chanyeol doesn’t know what he’s trying to look for, and he feels awkward just staring at the guy, so Chanyeol just turns around to watch his co-worker clean up. He only turns around when he hears a triumphant _aha_!

There’s ₩10,000 on the counter. Baekhyun is picking up his drinks again, smiling widely at Chanyeol. The raven takes the bill and takes Baekhyun’s hand before he can get his last drink. He doesn’t notice the dark flush on the other’s cheeks.

“I can’t take this.”

“Sure, you can.” Baekhyun says, voice weirdly shaky. Not that Chanyeol notices that, too. He’s too busy trying to get Baekhyun to get his money again. “It’s just a tip, for your good work.”

“We don’t take tips.”

“Well, take it as me wanting to help a friend out.”

“We’re not friends.”

Baekhyun flinches. Chanyeol freezes up when he realizes what he said.

“I-I mean—”

“It’s fine. You’re fine.” Baekhyun looks down at the bag of coffee he’s carrying, forcing a laugh. “I mean, you’re not completely wrong, so.”

An awkward silence ensues. Chanyeol’s still holding onto the bill and Baekhyun’s still standing in front of him, pretending to look through the drinks he’s bought. After a while, Chanyeol sighs and says, “I’m Chanyeol.”

Baekhyun doesn’t answer, but he does peek up at Chanyeol. The raven waits for him to say something, but when Baekhyun remains silent, he continues, “thanks for the tip. I’ll find a way to repay you.”

The brunet shakes his head, smile now back on his face. “No need. Like I said, just helping out my friend, right?” Baekhyun looks at Chanyeol as if expecting him to try and make him take his money back again, but Chanyeol merely smiles back at him and nods. Baekhyun’s smile turns wider. He gives Chanyeol one last shy look before he turns to leave. Chanyeol pockets the note before his co-worker can see.

 

  
**651**  
  


“Oh hey, it’s Chanyeol!”

Said man turns around at the call of his name. He sees Baekhyun coming towards him with Blond & Bitchy in tow, a smile on the former’s face and a scowl on the latter’s. Chanyeol waits for them to get to him, still holding onto the bottle of mayonnaise he was looking at before he was called. When the two of them reach the raven, they stand for a moment and do nothing but look at each other in silence until Chanyeol breaks it with a ‘hi’.

“I didn’t know you do your groceries here,” Baekhyun replies after an overly enthusiastic _hi_ back. “We go here every Sunday, too. I don’t think I’ve seen you around before.”

Blond & Bitchy says something under his breath that Chanyeol can’t understand. Baekhyun elbows him on the side. “I just got off from work,” Chanyeol replies.

“Oh?” Baekhyun gets closer to Chanyeol, pretending to look over the other condiments on the shelf. Chanyeol puts the mayonnaise in his basket before grabbing ketchup next. Baekhyun speaks again. “From the store or the cafè?”

“You have two jobs now, too?” Blond & Bitchy suddenly butts in their conversation, standing close next to Baekhyun. “Isn’t that illegal or somethin’?”

Chanyeol ignores the other taller male and starts to walk away without a word. He’s only taken a step or two when Baekhyun is back at his side again, smiling apologetically. “Sorry about Sehun, he’s had a pretty bad day.”

“Like two weeks ago?”

Baekhyun blushes, keeps his gaze on the floor. “I’m sorry, he’s not usually like this, I swear.”

Chanyeol shrugs in reply because there’s really nothing he can do if the guy doesn’t like him. He looks down at his (short) grocery list, mentally checks off the ones he already has, and then heads over to the checkout counters. Baekhyun continues to follow him for some reason.

He starts to take out the items he’s bought onto the conveyor. Baekhyun waits for him to finish before he talks again. “Are you doing anything after…?”

Chanyeol has to think about the question for a quick sec before shaking his head, “no, not really.”

Baekhyun lights up at his answer. “Ah, well, I’m actually done with classes, so, uh...” The brunet nervously licks his lips, fingers fidgeting. “I don’t have anything to do for the rest of the day… If you’d like, do you maybe wanna hang out…?”

It takes Chanyeol a whole minute to process the question. Before he could even answer though, he’s next in line to checkout so he does that first. Baekhyun waits patiently. Just when Chanyeol’s done and ready to answer, Blond & Bitchy—Sehun—appears behind Baekhyun with their own groceries in a pushcart.

Chanyeol would’ve left then and there if it weren’t for the fact that Baekhyun was eagerly waiting for his answer. He takes one look at Sehun—catches the glare sent his way—and sighs, mustering an apologetic forced smile on his face. “Sorry, I still have to do something at home.”

It’s a lie. Chanyeol doesn’t have anything to do for the next two days, but Baekhyun doesn’t know that, doesn’t have to know that. The brunet looked like a nice guy, really friendly, but Chanyeol would rather not have to hangout with another certain someone who looks like he wants to kill him.

As expected, Baekhyun’s smile falls but it’s back again in a blink of an eye. His laugh is forced as he takes a step back, bumping into Sehun. The blond holds onto his arms to right him. “Oh, well, okay then. Maybe next time?”

Baekhyun’s smile is hopeful. Chanyeol didn’t like that frown he saw, quick as it was. “Sure. Next time.”

Chanyeol goes home feeling light and with the brunet’s smile on his mind.

 

 

**646  
**   


Next time gets delayed two more times before it finally happens. Chanyeol manages to get another day off on both of his jobs and tells Baekhyun about it when the brunet drops by to buy his strawberry gummies. He’s rewarded with a grin and Baekhyun’s number to ‘ _text me so we can plan for our day_ ’.

They end up only going to the park to walk Baekhyun’s dog—after hearing Chanyeol talk about how he’s always wanted a dog for hours—and then grabbing a quick bite at what ever food joint was close. Maybe walk Mongryong some more. Chanyeol isn’t sure, he just agreed to everything Baekhyun suggested after Chanyeol made sure they’re going to walk his dog.

They meet at ten in the morning on a Friday. It’s a bit colder than usual, so Chanyeol wears a turtleneck over his shirt and an overcoat to top it all off. He would’ve worn some gloves too, but he couldn’t find them so he opts to just warm his hands in his pockets. He waits for Baekhyun to arrive near the entrance of the park, taking the time to just people-watch for a while. He counts the people going into the park when he gets bored, and counts at least fourteen when he feels a tap on his shoulder. He turns around to see Baekhyun smiling at him. A quick cast downwards and he sees Mongryong, happily wagging his stub of a tail.

“Sorry we took so long, I misplaced Mongryong’s leash.” Baekhyun says sheepishly.

“It’s alright,” Chanyeol says, eyes still locked on the pup looking right back at him. “Can I hold him?”

Baekhyun eagerly nods, already kneeling down to carry Mongryong into his arms. “Of course! Here.”

They walk into the park with Mongryong in Chanyeol’s arms, the latter sporting a grin as he gently sways the pup. Baekhyun walks beside them, still holding onto his pup’s leash and looking up at Chanyeol in amusement.

The first ten minutes are spent with the two of them just walking around while Chanyeol quietly cooes at the pup still in his arms. Neither of them talk, but it’s okay because Chanyeol doesn’t mind the serene ambience of the park. It’s not until they’ve rounded the whole park does Baekhyun start to tug on Mongryong’s leash, forcing Chanyeol’s little bubble with the pup to pop. He looks down at the other male and cocks a brow in question.

“I brought Mongryong here to walk him,” Baekhyun explains, his tone making it sound like he was talking to a kid. “If you keep on carrying him, he won’t get his exercise and he’ll get fatter.”

“Mongryong isn’t fat.” Chanyeol defends the pup but still sets him down after giving him a kiss on the head. Mongryong barks happily and runs around Chanyeol and Baekhyun’s legs before trying to run ahead, pulling his owner along with him. Baekhyun easily gets pulled along and Chanyeol follows after them, excited to spend the day with the pup (and maybe its owner too, but he won’t admit that).

They don’t talk much—or rather, they can’t no matter how hard Baekhyun attempts to start a conversation with Chanyeol. Mongryong always tries to run after a random thing or child whenever the brunet tries to say something, sometimes Chanyeol is too busy trying to get Mongryong’s attention to realize the pup’s owner was talking to him, but most of the time Baekhyun is bombarded with children eager to know about Mongryong and getting permission to pet him.

When the clock strikes twelve, Baekhyun leads them to a nearby café that he says serve the best coffee. Chanyeol asks if he thinks Bandal serves shitty coffee and Baekhyun can only cough and look away. Chanyeol doesn’t blame him; his co-worker had already warned him about their coffee so he made sure to steer clear of it.

True to Baekhyun’s word though, the café they go to _does_ have pretty good coffee. Granted, he has nothing to compare it to other than the ‘free’ coffee he gets at Nanari, but still. They order their drinks and a slice of cake for Baekhyun then sit outside so they can still have Mongryong with them. The few people that pass by coo at the pup and take pictures. Baekhyun lets them, attention only focused on the raven.

“So, Chanyeol,” he starts, both of his hands wrapped around his cup. Chanyeol notices how the other’s cheeks a bit flushed, from the cold probably. The raven takes a sip of his drink and motions for Baekhyun to continue. “Are you still studying?”

Chanyeol shakes his head and looks down at his coffee, gently swirling the contents around. “No, dropped out on my third year.”

“Oh? Why, though?”

Chanyeol worries at his bottom lip. It was a pretty personal reason, for him at least, and he hasn’t really told anyone about it. “I don’t think we’re close enough for me to tell you that.”

Baekhyun seems surprised at his answer. Chanyeol doesn’t understand why, he was only stating the truth, but he supposes that he’s a bit too blunt. Before he can apologize though, Baekhyun laughs and waves a dismissive hand as if he already knew Chanyeol was about to say sorry. “Right, right, of course.” He takes a sip of his drink and looks at Chanyeol through his lashes. “But... We can use this time to get to know each other a lil’ more, yeah? **’** ”

Chanyeol gulps. Looks down at his cup and wonders why are his palms suddenly sweaty. When he looks back up at Baekhyun and sees him still staring at him, he clears his throat and purses his lips before nodding, quite shyly, and then fumbles with the handle of his cup. The bright smile he receives in return is enough to warm him up when his coffee turns cold.

 

 

**620  
**   


Their third date doesn’t include Mongryong, much to Chanyeol’s disappointment, but it’s fine because at least he finally gets to spend a whole day with just Baekhyun. The brunet suggests watching a movie this time, and while Chanyeol isn’t really a fan of any of the films being shown, he agrees because he doesn’t know what else they can do.

Baekhyun chooses a horror movie. Baekhyun has also kept on looking at him ever since they met up at the cinemas, up to when they were buying popcorn, until they went to their seats and the lights dimmed as the previews were over. Baekhyun only looks away from him when the movie starts, an (admittedly) adorable pout on his face. Chanyeol has to shove a handful of popcorn into his mouth to hide the smile that forms on his face.

Chanyeol ends up liking the movie. He yelps at the jumpscares, flinches at sudden, loud sounds, and covers his eyes when the music fades to silence. Even without looking at the brunet by his side, he _knows_ that Baekhyun is laughing at him, if the little shakes are any indication. When the movie is done and all others start to stand to leave, the two of them stay in their seats, watching the credits roll as Chanyeol munches on his remaining popcorn.

There are only five of them in the cinema. Them, another couple, and some old guy at the very front. Chanyeol isn’t sure if he’s sleeping or he’s still watching the credits. He figures it’s the former. Just as Chanyeol is about to ask Baekhyun about it (just so they can have some sort of conversation, Chanyeol was starting to feel bad that it was always Baekhyun who tries to get him to talk), the other male turns to look at him with a smile. “Did you like the movie?”

Chanyeol tilts his head to the side and shrugs, worrying on his bottom lip. “It was good. Not a huge fan of them, but I enjoyed it since you’re with me.”

A bright red covers Baekhyun’s cheeks. Chanyeol figures it must be something he said. Did he like that last part? He makes a mental note of it.

They go out of the cinemas side by side. Baekhyun’s fingers keep on bumping against Chanyeol’s hand. He keeps on apologizing but Chanyeol can see he isn’t really sorry. When Baekhyun suggests a quick bite, Chanyeol takes the smaller’s hand in his, pretending to not notice how Baekhyun’s face burns red.

Even when they find a place to eat in, Chanyeol keeps their hands laced. Baekhyun’s blush has only gotten darker and he can barely look at his date. He keeps his eyes locked on the table, sometimes wandering over to their twined hands on his lap, but mostly on the table.

“Don’t you wanna sit on the other side?” Baekhyun asks after a while of silence, gathering enough courage to look up at his boyfriend. Chanyeol’s already looking at him.

“No. I’m fine here.” A beat. Then, he follows up, “do you want me to sit there?”

Baekhyun quickly shakes his head, tightening his hold on Chanyeol’s hand. “No! No, I want you here— I mean! It’s okay if you, um, stay here.”

And so Chanyeol stays.

Early dinner goes quite well. They make small talk, and Baekhyun’s cheeks finally catch a break when Chanyeol lets go of the smaller’s hand so he can eat. They order dessert just so they can stay a bit longer and talk some more. Baekhyun finds out that Chanyeol isn’t as shy as he normally is once they’ve gotten close, and Chanyeol finds himself liking the light flush that covers Baekhyun’s cheeks whenever their knees or foot bump into each other.

They leave just thirty minutes before closing time. They go on the same bus, except Baekhyun gets off at the third stop while Chanyeol gets off at the fifth. Upon Chanyeol’s persistence, he walks Baekhyun home to his place. They purposely walk slow so that they can carry on their conversation about Chanyeol’s allergies and Baekhyun’s hatred of cucumbers. Their pace slows down even more when they finally reach Baekhyun’s apartment.

Baekhyun stands in front of him, lips pursed inward and looking up at Chanyeol with a glint in his eye. He licks his lips twice before he takes a deep breath and asks, “Chanyeol, will you be my boyfriend?”

The smile that was previously on Chanyeol’s face disappears to make way for confusion. Baekhyun must have thought of it as him getting rejected because his expression falls and his eyes glaze over with unshed tears. Chanyeol panics because of it. Baekhyun is already sniffing and wiping at his eyes, mouth open and ready to speak, but Chanyeol beats him to it.

“Aren’t we already boyfriends?”

It’s Baekhyun’s turn to get confused now. His tears have gone but he’s still sniffling and his nose is a cute red. Chanyeol explains to him before he even has to ask.

“I-I mean… As far as I know, don’t you become official when you go out with someone for the first time…? Or is that not how things work?”

Baekhyun sniffles twice. “Y-You mean… You already thought of me as your… Your boyfriend since three weeks ago?”

Chanyeol blushes. “Was I not supposed to...?”

The two of them are quiet. Chanyeol is still red with embarrassment while Baekhyun silently looks up at him with an unreadable expression. While Chanyeol internally dies from what he thinks is Baekhyun’s rejection, the smaller laughs. And laughs. Chanyeol doesn’t know what to do so he keeps silent and lets the brunet laugh until he’s only giggling and shaking his head.

“Oh, Chanyeol,” he cooes, “you’re too cute. Ah, really.”

Chanyeol blushes again, more because of the complement this time. He fumbles with his fingers for a bit before he shyly asks, “so we’re boyfriends...?”

The smile that Baekhyun gives him has his heart skipping. The only confirmation he gets is the timid nod the smaller gives and the quick peck on the cheek he gets before Baekhyun runs inside the building. Chanyeol goes home with his heart still racing and his cheeks red.

 

 

**614  
**   


They’re out with Baekhyun’s friends. Baekhyun introduced them all to Chanyeol earlier, but he really can’t remember their names other than Sehun’s (who still looked bitchier as ever, but now had brown hair like Baekhyun’s), and Kyungsoo’s (who looked like he was always angry until Baekhyun explained to him that the guy just forgot to bring his glasses and he had shitty eyesight).

The guy who’s always beside Sehun passes beer around. Kyungsoo declines and gets some juice instead. Baekhyun sits close to Chanyeol, leaning his front to Chanyeol’s arm and resting his cheek against the taller’s shoulder. He’s nursing his own bottle of beer. Chanyeol only has his half-empty can of Sprite. They’re all talking and talking about a story that one of Baekhyun's friends told earlier. Chanyeol can’t relate because there’s a lot of name he hears but doesn’t know the face to.

He’s silent the entire time, only sips on his drink and looks around the comfy little cafè slash bar they’re in. Baekhyun seems to notice how silent he is (more than usual at least), so he excuses the both of them and pulls Chanyeol away from their table. Chanyeol has no idea where they’re going but he’d rather be with Baekhyun than with a bunch of people he doesn’t really like much.

Baekhyun brings him outside. The cool air feels nice. Chanyeol doesn’t realize how stuffy it was inside until he’s able to take a huge gulp of air that isn’t infused with cigarette smoke. He drinks the rest of his Sprite before crushing the can and pocketing it when he doesn’t see any trash can around. Baekhyun has his gaze pinned on him as he nips on the mouth of his bottle.

“Sooo,” he drawls, head cutely tilting to one side as he smiles up at his boyfriend. “Whaddya think of my friends?”

Chanyeol licks his lips and looks back at Baekhyun. He tries to string together words that he hopes will sound nice, wouldn’t offend the smaller male, but all he can really think of is _eh_. So he shrugs and smiles, hoping that it would be a good enough answer. Baekhyun only laughs at him before he downs his beer and drapes himself over Chanyeol.

“You’re such a cutie,” the brunet slurs, a dopey smile on his face as he buries his nose against Chanyeol’s neck. Chanyeol can only smile back as he wraps his own arms around Baekhyun’s waist, helping the man stay upright. “My cute little Yeollie…”

Baekhyun’s starting to lean in, obviously wanting a kiss. Chanyeol panics a little—he doesn’t have any problem with kissing his boyfriend, but he’s worried because Baekhyun’s drunk and he doesn’t want him to regret their kiss when he wakes up sober; if he’d still remember it, that is. He moves his head to the side so that Baekhyun’s lips end up pecking his cheek instead.

The brunet whines and stomps his feet. Chanyeol can’t help but smile at how cute he’s acting.

“Don’t ya wanna kiss me, Yeollie?” He asks, lips already pursed and ready to be smooched.

Chanyeol laughs. “I’d rather kiss you when you’re not drunk.”

“But whyyyyyyyyy!” The smaller whines again. He rests his entire weight onto his boyfriend, forcing Chanyeol to carry him in his arms by his armpits. “What’s wrong wit’ kissin’ me while m’drunk? Does my breath smell?” Baekhyun’s nose scrunches up and he brings a hand up to cover his mouth and nose with it, letting out loud _ahhs_ and trying to sniff at his breath.

Chanyeol really can’t stop himself from laughing now. He shifts their position so that Baekhyun is wrapped more comfortably around Chanyeol’s arms, his entire weight still carried by his boyfriend. He’s pouting up at him again, hands gripping onto Chanyeol’s shirt tightly. “I don’t think my breath smells,” he says, trying to tiptoe in hopes of getting to reach Chanyeol’s lips. “Can you gimme a kiss now?”

“Not while you’re drunk,” Chanyeol says, tone firm despite the amused smile on his face.

It only makes Baekhyun’s pout deepen and he whines some more. Chanyeol can do nothing but watch his boyfriend in amusement and hug him tight so as to not make him fall. He listens to him whine some more about how Chanyeol doesn't like him anymore, and when Baekhyun starts to get teary-eyed, he finally folds.

"Promise me you won't regret this in the morning."

"Why would I regret kissing you?" Baekhyun asks, genuinely confused.

Chanyeol doesn't bother explaining why. He simply closes the distance between them, Baekhyun letting out a gasp before he moans and eagerly kisses Chanyeol back.

The brunet proceeds to puke right after they pull away. Chanyeol tries very hard to convince himself it's not because of him.

 

 

**400  
**   


Not a day passes by where Chanyeol’s mind is constantly plagued with thoughts of _is this what love is supposed to be like_?

Dating Baekhyun is… nice. He supposes. He goes through his days as usual, except his phone rings a whole lot more and there’s someone that waits for him after work (though, now that he thinks about it, he’s pretty sure it’s supposed to be the other way around even though Baekhyun says otherwise). There’s someone to keep him company on lonely nights, and on days where he doesn’t have work, they go on little dates.

Chanyeol is a lot more eager to cover for his co-workers shifts, too. Ended up working back in the cafe as well just two months after he’d resigned, wanting to earn more money. Now that he had a boyfriend, he felt like he needed to provide more for Baekhyun, even though the brunet insists that he doesn’t need anything.

Thankfully, he has saved up enough that he still has a few thousands left after he pays for his daily expenses. He uses the money to buy Baekhyun little gifts, just something to give to his boyfriend whenever they meet up. When he gets a pretty big pay, he buys them both rings, something that made Baekhyun clam up when he first saw them.

“I’m not proposing,” Chanyeol assured him, holding onto Baekhyun’s arm because it looked like the brunet was about to run away. “Just… promise rings.”

“But what for?” Baekhyun asks, taking the smaller ring to inspect it. It’s a plain silver band, nothing fancy, but just the thought that Chanyeol bought them rings— _promise rings_ —is enough to make him blush.

“I don’t know yet,” Chanyeol admits with a pout. He watches Baekhyun fiddle with the ring for a moment before he takes it back so he can slip it into Baekhyun’s ring finger and says the first thing that comes to his mind, “a promise for me to love you until the end of time.”

Baekhyun’s entire face and the tips of his ears are red as he takes his hand back and punches Chanyeol on the arm. “You said the L-word!”

“What L-word?”

“You know!” Baekhyun stomps his feet and mouths the word _love_.

“Love?”

“You said it again!” Chanyeol gets another punch.

“What’s wrong with it?” The raven pouts, holding onto his arm in case his boyfriend tries punching him again.

“I-It’s just that...” Baekhyun looks down at the ring now fitted into his finger. “We haven’t… Really said it to each other yet...”

Chanyeol doesn’t know how to reply to that. Was he supposed to wait for a special day for him to tell Baekhyun that? Fuck, he must’ve ruined it again for them. They’re silent for a moment and Chanyeol puts his own ring on himself. Baekhyun looks up at him through his lashes. “Can you say that again?”

“What?”

“The L-word.”

Chanyeol puts a hand on his arm. “I love you.”

Baekhyun doesn’t punch him this time. He only gets a kiss in return.

 

 

**382  
**   


“Was that your boyfriend?”

Chanyeol turns around to see Soohwa—his new co-worker—staring at Baekhyun’s retreating back until his boyfriend’s figure is swallowed by the crowd outside. He carries the packed lunch that Baekhyun had brought him behind the counter, hiding it for his break later. “Yeah. Why?”

Soohwa hums thoughtfully, nodding a bit. “He’s pretty cute, huh?”

Chanyeol's brows furrow. He doesn’t know how to react to that, but one thing’s for sure, he doesn’t like the weird feeling in his chest, knowing that someone else was looking at Baekhyun. He shrugs in reply, choosing to busy himself with washing some utensils they used earlier.

Except, Soohwa isn’t done. He sidles up to Chanyeol with a greasy smile and says, “so how long have you two been together?”

“Almost seven months,” Chanyeol answers when he feels like Soohwa won’t stop bothering him, seeing as there aren’t a lot of customers coming in.

Soohwa whistles. “Seven months, huh?” He gives Chanyeol a _look_ that the raven doesn’t really understand, but knowing Soohwa (even if just for two weeks), it doesn’t mean anything good. “Honeymoon period’s ‘bout to be over then, yeah?”

Chanyeol guessed right. “What do you mean?”

“Ah, y’know,” the man shrugs nonchalantly as he leans against the counter next to Chanyeol. “You’re together, everything’s all new and shiny. Both of ya eager to get to know one another, hmm?” Soohwa gives a crude wink that makes Chanyeol shiver in disgust. “You’re all lovey dovey with each other until— _poof!_ ” The man’s voice is loud enough that the other customers in the shop startle in their seats and turn to glare at Soohwa.

Soohwa doesn’t seem to care though. He only flails his arms around in some poor attempt of trying to mimic an explosion. “Everything’s boring and you start to look for somethin’ else.”

Chanyeol snorts and turns his attention back to washing. But Soohwa isn’t done yet, he gets closer to the taller male and repeatedly pokes him on the arm. “‘S’true, though! Lotsa my friends break up after a few months. Most of the time it’s because they’re cheating.”

“My boyfriend isn’t like that.”

“Is he really not, though?”

The two of them glare at each other—or rather, Chanyeol does. Soohwa looks far too smug, as if he’s proud that he’s made Chanyeol mad. Chanyeol doesn’t want to back down from his glaring, but Soohwa obviously doesn’t want to ease up as well. It’s not until a customer comes do they finally divert their attention, but Chanyeol still feels pretty annoyed from the whole talk.

Chanyeol takes the customer’s order and relays it to Soohwa without looking at the man. He busies himself by counting the money in the till next, but then Soohwa passes by him to further piss him off; “if I were you, I’d keep an eye on my lil boyfriend… Better safe than sorry, right?”

He ends up taking his lunch early.

 

 

**378  
**   


“Baek, you love me, right?”

Baekhyun looks up from the recipe in his phone he’s been reading through. Chanyeol had stopped stirring their soup as well, gaze completely focused on his boyfriend perched on their dining table. Baekhyun almost laughs because he thinks Chanyeol’s joking, but when Chanyeol doesn’t smile, his brows furrow and he slowly pushes himself off the table.

“Of course I do, why would you even ask that?” Baekhyun stands in front of the raven, hands on his hips as he tries to search Chanyeol’s face. His boyfriend is looking at him, but his gaze looks worried. “Did I do something to make you think I don’t?”

“N-No, of course not,” Chanyeol hurries to explain, quickly turning to stove off so he can pull Baekhyun in by his waist. Baekhyun wants to tell him that he shouldn’t have turned off the stove and just put it on low instead, but he doesn’t think this is the time for it. “It’s just that… I don’t know, I’ve thought— Maybe that you— I’ve heard—”

“Chanyeol, baby, calm down,” Baekhyun places a hand on Chanyeol’s chest, rubbing gentle circles to calm the man. Chanyeol’s biting on his lower lip hard enough to break through skin. Baekhyun tsks and leans up to press a kiss on them until Chanyeol kisses him back.

They engage in a chaste lip lock until Baekhyun pulls away. “You don’t have to explain anything,” he says, one hand cupped over the taller’s face and caressing his cheek. “Just know that I love you and only you.”

“Forever?” Chanyeol whispers, eyes so full of insecurity that Baekhyun just wants to wrap him up in a blanket and keep him safe. Whoever hurt his boyfriend like this has to pay. “You won’t get tired of me, right?”

“Of course not, baby, I would never.” Baekhyun is quick to reassure him, pressing another peck to Chanyeol’s lips and each of his cheeks. Chanyeol catches his lips for another kiss, his worries now temporarily mollified.

 

 

**349  
**   


Despite Baekhyun’s constant reassurance of his love for him, Chanyeol doesn’t think it’s enough anymore.

This is the fifth time this month he’s left for another one of his friend’s invitation to hangout. Chanyeol’s been invited too, but Baekhyun knows he doesn’t like going out much, so he says that he’ll be the one to go for the both of them. Chanyeol wants to tell him that he doesn’t want Baekhyun to go, but how can he say that without sounding too possessive?

Dangerous thoughts start to cloud Chanyeol’s mind. Soohwa’s words come back. _My friends break up because of cheating_. Cheating. Baekhyun, cheating? He would never, right?

 _Of course not_ , Chanyeol tells himself, angry at the thought of him thinking so badly about his boyfriend like that. _Baekhyun loves me, he wouldn’t cheat on me._

Baekhyun loves me. He tells himself every day.

But when another week comes and Baekhyun has to leave again, he’s starting to think otherwise.

 

 

 **303  
**   
“You love me, right?"

Baekhyun’s moans are Chanyeol’s favorite thing in the whole world. He always thought that Baekhyun looked beautiful with whatever he wore, but nothing could ever compete with him naked and covered with Chanyeol’s marks. Chanyeol keeps his eyes on the dark hickies he’s sucked onto his boyfriend’s neck and shoulders, a stark contrast against his pale skin.

“I love you. Love you, love you s-so much, only you...”

“You won’t leave me, right? Tell me you’ll never leave me.”

“N-Never. Never leave you, w-want to stay with you forever...”

Chanyeol’s hold on Baekhyun’s hips tighten and he fastens his pace. The sound of their lovemaking fills the room and Chanyeol revels in it. Baekhyun’s cries of his name has his cock twitching deep inside the brunet’s warmth.

“Promise me, then. Promise me, Baekhyunnie. Say you’ll never leave me.”

Baekhyun clenches around his length, making Chanyeol groan and squeeze Baekhyun’s hips even tighter. Baekhyun continues to cry and babble mindlessly, trying to push Chanyeol further into him with his legs and scratching his blunt nails down the taller’s back. Chanyeol is close, but he doesn’t want to come, not until Baekhyun promises him.

“Promise me, Hyunnie. Say you’ll never leave me.”

“Y-yeol— _ah!_ —Yeollie, p-please… Touch me, I’m close… So close, need you to touch me, please—”

“I need you to promise me, Baekhyun, tell me you won’t ever leave me.”

“Chanyeol—”

“ _Say it!_ ”

Baekhyun’s breathing gets abruptly cut off by the hand on his neck. Chanyeol is choking him, but it’s a complete surprise to him that he panics, hands flying to Chanyeol’s own wrapped around him. Chanyeol is glaring at him, breathing harshly and looking crazed.

“Promise me, Baekhyun.”

Baekhyun hurriedly nods, wanting to breathe again. Once Chanyeol lets go, he takes in a huge gulp of air and starts coughing. Chanyeol shushes him and hugs him to his chest—his length still inside of his lover—and starts to pet his hair.

“I just need you to say it, Hyunnie,” he croons into the other’s ear, his hips slowly moving and hitting Baekhyun’s sweet spot that the brunet can’t help but let out little moans despite being scared just seconds ago. “Just promise me that you love me forever and you’ll never leave me.”

“I promise,” Baekhyun manages to croak out, hugging Chanyeol again and closing his eyes, desperate for his release. “I won’t leave you. I’ll never leave you, I love you, I promise.”

Chanyeol kisses his cheek and breathes out a thank you before he allows him to come.

 

 

 **298  
** 

“Chanyeol, babe, I’ll be going out for a bit.” 

Chanyeol’s head peeks out from their bedroom, eyes boring into the back of Baekhyun’s head as his boyfriend puts on his coat and shoes. He’s already up and moving towards him when Baekhyun finishes, wrapping an arm around the smaller male when Baekhyun stands. The brunet isn’t surprised at the feel of his lover’s arms around him, already far too used to Chanyeol being clingy whenever he leaves. “Don’t go.”

“I won’t be long,” Baekhyun chuckles, giving Chanyeol’s hand around his waist a pat. “I’ll even text you when I get there, okay? You can even call me, we can talk to each other while I walk.”

“That’s not enough,” Chanyeol grumbles, lips already formed into a pout as he wraps his other arm around Baekhyun’s waist and pulls his lover closer to his chest. He buries his face into Baekhyun’s neck, pressing light kisses over patches of skin he can reach. “I want you to stay with me.”

Baekhyun’s smiles slowly tapers off as he moves his head to the side, allowing Chanyeol to have more space to give him kisses. He giggles when Chanyeol’s breath hits a sensitive spot and tries to wriggle away but his boyfriend only tightens his hold on him and gives him more kisses. Eventually, Baekhyun manages to escape and runs to the front door before Chanyeol can even reach for him.

The little rascal gives him a cheeky smile and a flying kiss before he’s out the door, calling out an ‘ _I love you, Yeollie!_ ’ on his way. Chanyeol sighs. He supposes he can handle another night without his lover to keep him company.

 

 

**282  
**   


“Where are you going? 

Baekhyun looks up from tying his shoes, surprised to see his boyfriend standing so close to him. He chuckles and finishes tying up his laces before he stands up and holds his arms out, slowly twirling. Chanyeol continues to look at him with furrowed brows, fingers twitching from his sides. “How do I look?”

Chanyeol doesn’t know why Baekhyun asks him that. His lover looks perfect as he always is, but he’s more confused as to why the brunet doesn’t answer his question. He repeats, “where are you going?”

“It’s Sehun’s birthday, remember? I told you about this last week.”

“But you already left three times this week.” Chanyeol counters, chest tightening at the sight of his boyfriend ignoring him and choosing to look over himself in the mirror instead. His fingers itch to take hold of Baekhyun but he doesn’t. “You were practically gone last week as well. And the week before that, too.”

Baekhyun rolls his eyes. _Rolls his eyes_ , at Chanyeol, his _lover_. “Chanyeol, baby, you’re kind of being dramatic right now.”

Chanyeol doesn’t like this. Baekhyun looks like he doesn’t care and his hands are starting to visibly tremble. Even the deep breaths he takes are shaky, but Baekhyun only takes his phone from his pocket to text and _smile_ at it. Something clicks in Chanyeol’s mind and dread immediately fills him. This is what he’s been scared of the past month, and it’s happening.

Baekhyun laughs at something at his phone, shaking his head and tapping at the screen before he pockets it again and turns to look at himself in the mirror one last time. He turns to Chanyeol last, looking at him with the corner of his lips pursed to one side as he stares at his boyfriend fondly. Except, Chanyeol knows it’s not the same. This isn’t the same Baekhyun he fell in love with months ago.

“I’ll be back soon, okay?” He talks to his lover as if he were talking to a child. Chanyeol once thought it was cute, but now he feels stupid. “I’ll just stay for an hour or so and I promise I’ll text you once I get there.” When the frown on Chanyeol’s face doesn’t let up, Baekhyun pouts and stands on the tip of his toes to press a chaste kiss on the taller’s lips. “My big baby, don’t be mad at me, please?”

The brunet continues to press more kisses all over Chanyeol’s face and lips, but he won’t get fooled again. Baekhyun must’ve finally found out how whipped Chanyeol is for him and is taking advantage of it. When Baekhyun presses another kiss to Chanyeol’s lips, Chanyeol keeps a firm hold on the back of his boyfriend’s neck, deepening their lip lock until Baekhyun is a moaning mess and winding his arms around Chanyeol’s neck.

When Chanyeol slowly pulls away, Baekhyun chases after his lips. He allows himself to be kissed for a second before he pulls away again, keeping Baekhyun in place with the hand on his neck. “Stay.”

Chanyeol had thought he convinced the brunet with his kisses, but Baekhyun just smiles and shakes his head. “No, not this time. I have to leave.”

He’s disappointed things have to turn out this way, mostly because he still hasn’t bought the proper… supplies for what he’s been planning on doing. He thought that he’d still have enough time, or that maybe his boyfriend would be obedient for once, but Baekhyun was starting to step out of line and Chanyeol needed to discipline him.

With a sigh and a shake of his head, Chanyeol says, “that wasn’t a question, sweetheart.”

Before the smaller can react, Chanyeol’s hand moves from being wrapped around the back of Baekhyun’s neck to tangling into his hair, his grip tight and angry that Baekhyun lets out a pained yelp. Chanyeol’s heart aches at the sound, but he has to steel himself or else Baekhyun would always want to leave him.

The raven forcefully drags his lover by the hair into their bedroom, turning a deaf ear to Baekhyun’s cries and ignoring the blunt nails that try to scratch at his arm. He throws Baekhyun to the bed, watching how the smaller scrambles to sit by the headboard, clutching at his head and glaring at his boyfriend with teary eyes. Chanyeol’s can definitely feel his heart ache again.

“What the fuck, Chanyeol!” Baekhyun screams, the flush on his cheeks turning deeper as more tears run down his face. “What did— W-Why did you— What the fuck is wrong with you?!”

Chanyeol doesn’t answer, only walks towards their bed to get closer to Baekhyun, but then the smaller starts to cry even harder and tries to kick him. Chanyeol still advances, holding onto Baekhyun’s legs before he can try to strike at him again. He pulls Baekhyun down until the smaller is lying on the bed, Chanyeol keeping him down by putting his entire weight on him. Baekhyun still refuses to look at him but it’s okay; Chanyeol just nuzzles his nose along his lover’s jaw.

Baekhyun is trembling, sniffing and trying to buck off Chanyeol on top of him. “Get off me,” he growls through clenched teeth. “I hate you. I fucking _hate_ you, I can’t believe you did that to me, what the fuck is wrong with you—”

The taller male shuts him up by clamping a hand over Baekhyun’s mouth. Still, the brunet tries to scream, forcing Chanyeol to tighten his hold. “Stop screaming,” Chanyeol whispers harshly, a bit angered at how his lover was acting. “You’re being dramatic.”

Baekhyun’s brows furrow and he only starts to thrash more wildly. Annoyed, Chanyeol wraps one hand around the smaller’s neck and squeezes, hard, making Baekhyun panic and stay still. He loosens his hold but keeps his hand in place, glaring at his boyfriend.

“I’m doing this for you,” Chanyeol tells him, his thumb gently caressing the side of Baekhyun’s neck. “For _us_. You’re changing, Baekhyun, you’re not the same person I fell in love with anymore.” It hurts Chanyeol to admit it, but he had to let Baekhyun know so he’d understand. He’s scared of losing the only person who’s ever really loved him, so he’ll do anything to keep him by his side.

Except, when he removes his hand from Baekhyun’s mouth, the latter still continues to scream words of hatred and profanity at him. Each word has Chanyeol’s heart further breaking until his dejection turns to anger, and then he’s up and striding towards their shared dresser to look for Baekhyun’s ties with the smaller storming after him.

Baekhyun starts to hit Chanyeol’s back, giving him punches wherever his fists could reach and screaming at him. Chanyeol ignores him and goes on to snatch up four ties before turning around and taking hold of Baekhyun’s arm before the man can run away. He pulls Baekhyun back towards the bed, throws him on top and pulls him back by the leg when he tries to escape. He takes one hand of Baekhyun and ties it to the bedpost.

“Chanyeol!” Baekhyun shouts, still trying to get away by kicking and punching his boyfriend. “Chanyeol, let go of me, you fucking psycho! Let me go or I’m going to fucking _kill_ you!”

Chanyeol ignores him. He finishes tying Baekhyun up to the bed and gagging him with the last tie. He’s torn between being happy and sad about having his boyfriend gagged. It must hurt, especially since it’s going to stay on for a few hours, but he supposes it’s better this way. He’d rather have Baekhyun silent than screaming at him about how much he hates him.

He approaches him and places a kiss on Baekhyun’s head. The brunet thrashes in bed and tries to get away from Chanyeol.

“I’ll be back when you’ve learned your lesson.” Chanyeol whispers to his ear, gives him one last kiss before he leaves their room and locks it up from the outside.

 

 

 **263  
** 

“Don’t you wanna read? I brought you some of the books you haven’t finished reading yet.”

Baekhyun doesn’t look at him. Chanyeol stays seated by the bed, surrounded by music books and some comics he knows his lover likes.

“I don’t wanna read.”

“What do you wanna do, then?”

“I want to leave.”

Chanyeol sighs, looks down at the books flips one open. “I already told you, you can’t leave yet.”

Something crashes. Chanyeol’s head whips over to where Baekhyun is, sees that their dresser had been pushed down. There’s glass shards on the ground from their photos. Chanyeol stands up but then Baekhyun starts hurling random objects at him—a pillow, a flower vase, an alarm clock, a book.

“Why won’t you just let me leave!” Baekhyun cries, turning over their side table and picking up bottles of lotion and perfume to throw at Chanyeol. The taller easily dodges them. “I don’t wanna be here anymore! I don’t wanna be with you, I hate you, I _fucking hate you_ ! Leave me alone, leave me alone, _leave me alone_!”

“Baek, calm down, you’re just—”

“ _Don’t fucking touch me!_ ” Baekhyun slaps Chanyeol’s hands away before they can even get close to him, immediately running off to one corner of the room, far away from the raven. “Don’t touch me, I don’t want you near me. I hate you, I fucking _hate you_ , you’re the fucking worst! I want you gone from my life!”

“You don’t mean that—”

“ _I do_!” Baekhyun screams, loud enough that Chanyeol’s sure he can be heard from outside. “I fucking mean it! I don’t love you, I don’t love you anymore, you’re not the same Chanyeol I fell in love with!”

Baekhyun is throwing his own words right back at him. He takes a deep breath and tries to approach his lover again, but then Baekhyun throws another bottle of lotion at him and hits him right in the chest.

“Leave me alone!” Baekhyun screams. “Get out, don’t talk to me, don’t fucking _look at me_ , I don’t want to do anything with you!”

If that’s what Baekhyun wants, then Chanyeol will follow. He leaves without another word and makes sure to lock the door. He doesn’t open it again for the next few days.

 

 

**260  
**   


_Touch deprivation is a condition that involves little or no stimulation by way of physical contact with other people. Human touch has been proven to be vital to emotional, psychological, and physical growth in infants and to some extent, in older children and adults._

_Skin hunger—your skin literally hungers for the touch of another human being. To feel connected, accepted, and whole._

 

 

**239  
**   


“Why aren’t you talking to me?”

Chanyeol doesn’t look at Baekhyun, only sets his tray of food down on the floor. He stands to leave but then there’s a hand on his wrist, pulling him back and forcing him to stay. The feel of his lover’s fingers on his skin has Chanyeol sighing. He’s missed Baekhyun.

“Chanyeol. Why aren’t you talking to me?”

The raven stays quiet. He still doesn’t look at Baekhyun, too, keeps his gaze somewhere else.

“Chanyeol.” Baekhyun whines this time.

Feeling his resolve about to break, Chanyeol quickly pulls his wrist back and practically runs out the door. His hands are shaking when he locks his lover up again. He barely reaches the bathroom when he breaks down crying, curling into a little ball on the floor and holding onto the same place on his wrist that Baekhyun did.

 

 

**108  
**   


“Baekhyunnie, I’m home,”

Chanyeol takes off his coat and beanie, ruffling his hair before hanging both on the hanger. He fishes his keys out of his pocket and walks over to the bedroom door, knocking on it twice before he unlocks it. He pushes the door open a bit and peeks inside, wondering why his little lover is quiet today. He smiles when he sees Baekhyun asleep.

He walks into the room and sits on the bed next to his boyfriend’s sleeping figure, running a hand through his hair. “Baekhyunnie,” he whispers, caressing the brunet’s cheek. “Wake up, my love. It’s time for dinner.”

Baekhyun’s nose scrunches. He groans and yawns and stretches, all at the same time. When his eyes finally open, the first thing he sees is Chanyeol’s fond look directed at him. He smiles back and moves closer, lying his head on his boyfriend’s lap. “You’re back.”

“Sorry I took too long,” Chanyeol runs his hand through Baekhyun’s hair again. Now that he’s closer, he sees that his roots are growing. He’ll have to buy dye again soon. “Got caught up at work.”

“It’s okay,” Baekhyun says, voice still raspy from sleep.

They’re silent for a few seconds before Chanyeol gently pats his cheek. “Come on, then. Wake up, time for you to eat.”

Baekhyun stretches one last time before he sits up in bed, ready to eat whatever Chanyeol gives him. He hasn’t eaten anything for a good seven hours; he’s eaten his lunch earlier than usual so he’s hungrier today. He waits for Chanyeol to give him his tray but is surprised when the man only holds a hand out. He stares at it in confusion. “What’s that?”

“We’re gonna eat,” Chanyeol tells him, wiggling his fingers, still waiting for his boyfriend to take hold.

“Yeah, but where’s the food?”

“We still have to cook it, silly.”

Baekhyun doesn’t understand. Was Chanyeol allowing him out of the room? It seems like it. There’s no tray or food in sight, and he _did_ say ‘we’. He stares at Chanyeol’s hand for another while before he asks, “are you sure?”

Chanyeol’s expression darkens a bit. It’s silent for a good few seconds before he sighs and answers, “I trust that you’ll behave yourself once we’re outside.”

Baekhyun nods. He’s desperate to go outside, even if the outside is just their living room and kitchen. He takes Chanyeol’s hand and gives it a little squeeze, looking up at his boyfriend and feeling warm when he’s greeted with a smile. He smiles back and allows himself to get pulled out of bed and out of the bedroom.

 

 

**000  
**   


Chanyeol really is fucking dumb. He can’t even believe how incredibly _stupid_ he is. Not only did he forget the keys, but he forgot to lock up the bedroom _and_ the front door as well. If Baekhyun manages to escape, he doesn’t know what he would do.

He leaves the café in a rush, yelling out a shitty excuse to his co-worker as he sprints towards the nearest bus stop. If he could, he would’ve just ran all the way home, but it’ll take him even longer then, so he’ll have to make do with the bus. Thankfully, there aren’t a lot of people and the traffic is light, but Chanyeol is practically shaking with anxiety when his mind is plagued with thoughts of Baekhyun leaving him.

He’s out of the bus as soon as the doors open and running to their apartment. He climbs four flights of stairs before he’s standing in front of their place, chest heaving and heart racing for a whole different reason. He’s almost scared to open the door, scared of not seeing Baekhyun inside, of knowing that the love of his life left him. He reaches out a trembling hand for the door knob, feeling the cold metal seep into his skin before he slowly turns it open.

There’s the smell of something cooking. Something spicy. Chili? Kimchi? Chanyeol steps in and quietly closes the door. He leans back on it, senses on high as his muddled mind tries to understand what’s happening. Now that he’s inside, he hears soft singing, and the sound of something scraping, and the sizzling of something else cooking. He looks at the doorway to the kitchen and takes a step towards it, then another, and another, until he’s standing right in front of it and staring at Baekhyun’s back, wearing nothing but a shirt that Chanyeol recognizes as his.

Baekhyun is singing. He’s singing and he’s cooking and he’s still _here_ , still in their home, he didn’t leave even when Chanyeol had left the bedroom and front door unlocked. Baekhyun is singing and he still hasn’t sensed Chanyeol’s presence until the taller steps through the kitchen and their floorboards creak under his weight. Baekhyun stops singing and turns around so fast, Chanyeol’s worried he would’ve dropped the pan he’s still holding. When the brunet sees that it’s only his boyfriend, he heaves a huge sigh of relief, a smile now on his face, and sets the pan down as he turns the stove off.

“You know I hate getting surprised,” is all Baekhyun says as he wipes his hands on the apron he’s wearing. He takes it off and drapes it over a chair before he’s bounding over to Chanyeol to wrap his arms around the other’s neck and pull himself up to give him a kiss on the lips. Chanyeol, though still confused, leans down to let his boyfriend kiss him more comfortably.

The two engage in a chaste lip lock for a few seconds before Baekhyun’s pulling away with a small, shy smile, arms still around Chanyeol’s neck. Chanyeol’s own arms are wrapped around the smaller’s waist, keeping him close to his body. The two of them stare at each other for a moment before Baekhyun clears his throat and gives Chanyeol’s cheek a gentle pat. “Did work end early?”

Chanyeol shakes his head, eyes still gazing at Baekhyun in disbelief. “N-No… I just… Went back because I didn’t— I forgot— The, uh, keys—”

“Oh, yeah! The keys!” Baekhyun cuts him off. He pulls himself away from Chanyeol’s hold to run somewhere. Chanyeol moves to follow him but Baekhyun’s back the next second, hand holding onto a set of keys. He gives it to Chanyeol without a word. “I was supposed to visit you at work to give it to you after lunch, but then you came by. Oh! Wait, speaking of lunch,” Baekhyun hurries back over to the stove, taking his apron along with him. “Have you eaten yet? I only made enough for me since I didn’t know you were coming home, but I can make some more if—”

“Baekhyun.”

The brunet’s head turns towards Chanyeol’s voice, eyes patient as he waits for Chanyeol to speak. Chanyeol doesn’t, but he does approach Baekhyun until their toes touch and the smaller is looking up at him, brows now furrowed in worry. Baekhyun places a hand on Chanyeol’s chest. “You okay, Yeol?”

“I left the doors unlocked.”

Baekhyun’s brows shoot up in surprise. Before he can speak though, Chanyeol continues, “I left my keys, too. I was gone for three whole hours. You were alone.”

“What are you talking about, Chanyeol?” Baekhyun forces a laugh but his eyes betray his real feelings; he’s confused and a bit worried. But for what? Chanyeol doesn’t know. “Baby, you’re acting weird. Are you okay?”

Chanyeol really doesn’t know what’s happening. Baekhyun called him baby. _Baby_. He hasn’t heard his lover call him that for months. He’s speechless for a moment, until he clears his throat and rasps out, “you didn’t try to escape.”

Understanding slowly takes over Baekhyun’s features. He sighs and inwardly purses his lips in a small smile, both of his hands smoothing over his boyfriend’s chest before he pulls himself up to press a kiss on his lover’s lips. Chanyeol allows himself to get lost in the feeling of Baekhyun’s kisses again and even chases after him when the latter pulls away. Baekhyun giggles and taps  a finger on Chanyeol’s bottom lip. “I promised you, didn’t I? You’re stuck with me forever.”

**Author's Note:**

> hello dear prompter, if you've read this, i'm sorry if this doesn't live up to your standards....... lol honestly think i could've done better but alas, my time management sucks and i've barely had enough time to finish this ;;______;; still, i hope this is enough for you... definitely think i could've done a whole lot more with this but oh well oh well, i'll just have to add it in some other time i guess ;; one of these days i'm gonna add in a few more chapters to make up for the things i wasn't able to write! 
> 
> to whoever else has reached the end!!! thank u for reading this mess ;;;; i don't know whatever made u want to read this but THANKS A LOT!!!!! just knowing someone has read all my word vomit is enough to make me happy ヽ(；▽；)ノ !!!
> 
> ((also to admin moduck, ily thank u for dealing with my annoying ass lmao and for respecting my wish to not post my work in the adopted thread on twt <3!!!))


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